Football Focus

[SeanMacGabhann]

Aren't predictions in another thread - or should we merge?

Anyway - I want to echo Jah and Mockney's denunciation of that.... man. Occasionaly he comes up with something I can agree with but saying without the corporate seats yadda yadda we wouldn't have a new Wembley. I believe his statement is true as far as it goes.. so the choice is - Would fans rather the old Wembley (absolute dive that it was) or the new Wembley (where if they can;t get tickets to sold out games, there are always empty boxes)

I wouldn't mind (as much) the corporate boxes if they treated the evening like fans (Annasfield seems to have the right idea - yes it;s a corporate perk but darned if I'll miss any of the action - tell me that is true Anna!)

But if it;s a Wimbledon Centre Court ticket, a Wembley ticket, whatever - if you can't be arsed to watch the event you are a parasite not a benefactor. Without the event there is no you there so at least have the (here's that word again) humility to understand why and how you got there

[Annasfield]

Of course it's true Sean and I must say that the stadium is phenomenal. I know I'm comparing to Anfield, but the only thing I felt it lacked was atmosphere. England's repetoire of songs and chants is quite frankly shocking!

Clap clap, clap clap clap, clap clap clap, ENGLAND! (Boring!) Easy, Easy (I blame soccer am!)

To be fair there were alot of Prawn sandwich types there, but what really shocked me, was the number of "real fans", who left 10-15 mins before the final whistle. They missed goal number three ::o

My clients thoroughly enjoyed the game, we sat at Debenture level in normal seats and did not miss a second of the match. It was a great night. :)-D

[mockney piers]

> was the number of "real fans", who left 10-15 mins before the final whistle.

They must have experienced the old wembley without realising that the new one is a million times better for getting away from the damn place.

They'll know for next time (or actually they won't as they won't have learnt the lesson that things aren't as bad now).

AnotherPaul and I were there for the first ever competitive final *breaths on nails and polishes them on chest*

[Jah Lush]

SeanMacGabhann Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Aren't predictions in another thread - or should

> we merge?

I think that would be a very good idea Sean, we only need one football column which was the whole point in the beginning.

By the way if you look further up this thread I mentioned that I quite fancied the Scots to cause an upset in France and they damned well did too. Well done Scotland, best result of the night. Brilliant! As for England...a very solid performance indeed. Michael Owen almost back to his best and probably man of the match for scoring twice and making the other one but for me it was Gareth Barry who put in a very solid performance. I think Frank Lampard has now got a fight on his hands to win his place back. We have looked a much more solid and well balanced team with a left footed player in the midfield and what's more he didn't give the ball away. But I still don't think we should get too carried away with the last very good couple of results that we've had as there are always potential banana skins up ahead and we shouldn't count our chickens before they hatch, blah blah blah!

[mockney piers]

I've screaming "drop lampard" for about 2 years now.

He doesn't really fit into the setup as is, and I've rarely seen him play with any heart.

A spell in the cold can only do him and england good.

I always said that Heskey was class *ahem*

[Jah Lush]

Yes, Heskey has been excellent but I think it doesn't really matter whether we player with Gerrard or Lampard as both do a similar job for their clubs but just not together for England. Barry has given us much better balance. Also, I still think Ferdinand is prone to mistakes and once again he made a few last night that could have been costly. I'd rather have a fit Ledley King or Jonathan Woodgate in there alongside John Terry any day.

[mockney piers]

Again, Ferdinand is someone who believes in himself and his ability rather than in his workrate.

Can't fault Gerrard's work rate and commitment but you can Lampard's.

I think we all agree that they play the same role, so I'd rather keep Gerrard in there. Barry has indeed been excellent. I was actually surprised how good Villa were in the game against Chelsea the other day as I generally deem them to be the most boring team in top flight footie; and though I consider Reo-Coker to be a selfish little sh!t, it was good to seem him almost back to his best, which will only serve to give McClaren future selection headaches, no bad thing.

[Annasfield]

Obviously I am biased and think that Gerrard is Captain Fanatastic and was shocked when Terry won the Capataincy. Being at the game you see so much more than what is actually televised. It appeared to me that Gerrard was far more vocal in organising the team and I did wonder at times who was captain.

I don't rate Lampard, however for the sake of club over country, I'd much rather that he was selected over Gerrard - particularly for friendlies. Especially, when McClaren wants to play him with a broken foot (6)

Ferdinand made a couple of silly mistakes last night and IMO Barry should have been MOTM followed closely by Owen

[mockney piers]

I do rate Lampard every bit as good as Gerrard, but the fact remains he never does it for his country.

Weird, as I watched him at Upton Park for many years, and though he was always unpopular with the fans (lumplard, daddy's boy etc), he also consistently produced quality performances.

With all his European experience he's pretty much the complete player at his role these days, so his lacklustre England performances remain a total mystery.

[Jah Lush]

I don't think there's any mystery to it at all. The fact remains that Lampard and Gerrard aren't suited to playing together. I think anyone who regularly scores 20 goals from midfield as Lampard does though certainly deserves his place in the England squad. One is a perfect replacement for the other if either of them is unfit.

[Alan Dale]

If people prefer to stay in the bar rather than returning to their seats then clearly the answer is to let them drink on the terraces.

That would also improve the atmosphere no end.

We used to be able to drink on the terraces- what happened? Who spoiled the party?

[mockney piers]

I think you're missing my point, he doesn't perform regardless of who he's partenered with, your point does however still stand.

AD, quite, luckily you can at the Hamlets!

[East Dulwich Angst]

Now I don't want anyone to start shouting at me (well I don't care really), but come the next England game & Wayne Rooney is fit, I feel that he shouldn't take Heskey's place. Don't get me wrong I think Rooney is one of the best footballing talents we've got,but I am an even bigger believer in "If it aint broke....". I reckon that these last 2 games are the most balanced we've looked in a long long time.

[DaveR]

Funnily enough, I think Lampard may be better suited to the current set up than Gerrard, in that he scores more goals around the box, and is more likely to pick up knock-downs from Heskey and crosses from wide players. Lampard has never really played for England with a big man/little man combination up front.

What's going to happen when Rooney is available?

[Jah Lush]

I think it will still be a case of picking the best team available that suits the opposition that we're up against and who's fit and who's not, but you'd feel very sorry for any of the players that have played in the last two games and done so well if they were to be dropped. But having said that there were still one or two performances last night that need improving. Ferdinand for instance, despite scoring I thought had another poor game, making too many mistakes and Wright-Phillips, although I'm a big fan of his and he was good against Israel but failed miserably last night to put in any telling deliveries from the wing. So I feel the right-wing berth is still up for grabs and people like David Beckham who we know can do a good job there as he proved in his last couple of outings for us and also Aaron Lennon will come back into the equation once he is fit.

[SimonM]

I think it is going to prove a very long haul back for both Beckham and t'other Neville, given how well their replacements have played, and given that Lennon is still waiting in the wings.

As for Lampard, anyone else remember the story of the bet Terry supposedly had with him just before the World Cup? ?90K that he scores no goals...and it was the heavy burden of said bet that caused Frank to miss 20+ chances at goal...

[Jah Lush]

90 grand! No wonder he was shooting on sight and I must admit he was crap in the World Cup. That was one stupid bet that seriously backfired if it was meant to inspire him but it isn't much for someone who earns more than 100 grand a week.

[SimonM]

...And I see the ongoing dispute between West Ham United & Sheffield United today opened up a whole new front on the plane from Iceland... >:D

[Keef]

Lampard is a good player, but him and Gerrard can't play together, and if you have to pick one, then Gerrard is clear winner. He drives forward, and will get back and fill his defensive duties, something that you will never see from Lampard! Also, despite his god record of scoring for Chelsea, Lampard seems incapable of getting a shot on target for England. In the world cup he had more shots than any other player, and couldn't get one goal.

As for Heskey, I genuinel have been one of his few supporters. He's never going to score you a load of goals, and he's not the greatest player, but he's a work horse, he makes himself difficul to play against, and he is the bst foil for Owen.

Rooney and Owen could end up as a great partnership, but Rooney would have to be willing to drop back in to a Beardsley / Sheringham role, and feed Owen. I'm not sure Rooney's huge ego would allow that.

[SeanMacGabhann]

In years to come (and not that many IMO) Rooney will be the subject of many a "where did it all go wrong" article in the papers

Dripping talent, his attitude has always been suspect, but with the sort of attention he now gets his head is turned even more

He will become larger, injured more often, score just enough crucial goals to be in the team only to go missing in tournaments

All my opinion of course, but I have been predicting this trajectory since his Everton days and I stand by it

[Jah Lush]

Ahem; yes, young Rooney, he WAS potentially a great player. When he played in the hole in the World Cup at 17 before he got injured against Portugal you looked at him and thought that boy's got unbelievable talent and he's gonna be some player, but it seems to me that that is when he peaked. He doesn't seem to have progressed much and he still has an appalling temper, which makes him prone to getting booked and sent off.

As for the Lampard v Gerrard debate. They can't player together and if given the choice of the two to play with A.N Other in England's midfield then it's got to be Gerrard. Nuff said.

[Keef]

I really disliked Rooney when he got off the plane before the last world cup and said something like "the big man's back in town"... What a fecking gimp!

Still, he's clearly not the brightest penny in the pund, he's been given a sh!t load of money, he's hailed by the tabloids as England's Saviour *shudders*, and he's hardly surrounded by decent grounded people with his best interests at heart, so the poor boy doesn't really stand a chance.

Just compare him to Owen who burst on to the scene at a similar age.

[Ladygooner]

Nothing to do with him being an ex Everton player then Keef!

[Jah Lush]

Right! Come On You Spurs....please, please please let us beat the Gooner Scum tomorrow.

[East Dulwich Angst]

Come on the Leeds tonight. Let's make it 6 in a row.